The walk back felt quieter than it should've.

Rain slid off Ukai's leaves in heavy drops, tapping the umbrella above Raizen and Saffi. The streets were softer in this weather - fewer voices, fewer footsteps, less of that constant movement the city had during the day. Raizen kept one hand near his chest pocket now and then, just remembering it was empty.

Saffi walked close beside him under the umbrella, calm and quiet. She didn't ask questions. She just… Matched his pace, like she understood that sometimes silence was the best thing.

When they reached the temporary house, Raizen's shoulders loosened a little. He expected voices inside. Kenzo's loud comments. Eiden's calm presence. Something to ground the day again.

Saffi pushed the door open.

The room was empty.

No one looked up. No one greeted them. No clink of cups, no quiet conversation, no smell of food. Just still air and the faint sound of rain against the roof.

Raizen stood in the doorway for a second, eyes looking around.

Kenzo's hammer wasn't leaned anywhere obvious.

Eiden's coat wasn't hanging where it usually ended up.

Even the small clutter Kenzo normally left behind - a strap, a cloth, a tool he forgot to put away - wasn't there.

Raizen exhaled slowly.

Saffi stepped inside and closed the door gently behind them, like she didn't want to disturb the emptiness. She looked around too, then glanced at Raizen.

"They're not back yet, maybe they're busier?" she said softly.

"Kenzo? I doubt it… Raizen answered"

For a moment, he felt that awkwardness try to crawl up his spine. The kind that came when a room turned quiet and he didn't know what to do with his hands, his face, his presence.

He could already imagine it - Saffi sitting there politely while he stood around like a statue, both of them pretending it wasn't weird.

Then he realized... It would only be awkward if he made it awkward for her.

Raizen walked over to the table, pulled out his slate, and sat down. He wiped a bit of water off the surface with his sleeve and started scrolling through old notes, rereading diagrams and schedules he didn't even need.

Anything that looked busy.

Anything that kept his mind from drifting.

Behind him, Saffi made a small sound. Almost a giggle.

Raizen didn't turn right away. "What?"

Saffi stepped closer, still holding the umbrella even though they were inside, as if she forgot she had it. She set it down by the door and shook some rain from her hair.

"You really can't stop working" she said, amused.

Raizen shrugged, eyes still on the slate. "It's better than staring at the wall, I guess…"

Saffi sat on her mattress, kicked her shoes off, and stretched with a quiet sigh. She looked tired now that she didn't have to hold herself together outside. The day caught up to her the moment she sat down.

"I think I'm going to take a short nap" Saffi said.

Raizen nodded absently. "Who am I to stop you?"

Saffi stared at him for a second like she wanted to say something else. Her eyelids were heavier than usual, and her words came slower, more unintelligible, like her brain already drifted toward sleep.

"If you want…" she began, then hesitated. "You can sleep with me."

Raizen froze. "Ha?"

Then Saffi's face turned red so fast Raizen almost felt bad for witnessing it. Her eyes widened in horror at her own words.

"I - I meant" she rushed out, voice suddenly higher with panic. "I meant you can sleep too. Not - not with me. I meant, you should also sleep. On your own. Not- "

She stopped, because the sentence only got worse the more she tried to fix it.

Saffi grabbed the blanket and pulled it up over her head like it could erase her from existence.

Raizen stared at the blanket lump for a second, then slowly exhaled through his nose.

He didn't want to make stuff worse, so he stood up and walked toward her mattress, crouching at the edge like he talked to a shy animal.

"Hey" he said carefully.

From under the blanket, a tiny voice replied, muffled.

"…What?"

Raizen kept his tone calm, almost matter-of-fact, like he was saving her.

"Um… You shouldn't sleep in those clothes" he said. "You were outside in the rain."

Silence.

Then the blanket shifted slightly, like she nodded without showing her face.

Raizen stepped back.

"I don't want to disturb you" he added. "So I'll go for a walk."

The blanket didn't move again, but Saffi's voice came out quietly.

"Alright."

Raizen grabbed the umbrella by the door, paused for a second, then spoke again, as if he wanted to make sure she didn't spiral into embarrassment alone.

"I'll be back… Soon" he said.

The blanket lump made a small sound that might've been a question.

"Before three a.m. this time, I promise" Raizen smiled, as he was opening the door.

---

Outside, the rain hit him immediately.

It felt colder without Saffi beside him. Not because of the warmth - because of her presence. The umbrella covered his head, but his shoulders still got damp at the edges, and the wind carried a wet bite that made him blink a few times.

For a few minutes, he just walked.

No one chased him. No one pulled him into a meeting. No one asked him for anything. No vines appeared under his feet. No whispers touched his mind. Ukai simply existed around him, rainy and calm and strangely peaceful.

He hadn't realized how good that felt until he had it.

Raizen turned down a street he didn't recognize, then another. He wasn't lost - Ukai had a way of guiding you without signs. You followed sound and light and instinct, and somehow you ended up where people were.

He spotted a small shop with a warm glow behind a glass wall and a sign that promised something simple.

Herbal Tea

Raizen hesitated for half a second. "The shops around here really have really straightforward names, huh?"

He pushed the door open.

A bell chimed softly at the entrance, just like the flower preservation shop.

Warmth wrapped around him immediately, along with the scent of herbs and dried flowers. The place wasn't too big. It was cozy, with low tables and chairs and a long counter where a woman stirred something steaming in a copper kettle.

Raizen stepped in and paused.

Then something brushed against his leg.

He flinched and looked down.

A cat.

Gray and white, fluffy, staring up at him with the calm confidence of something that owned the building.

Raizen blinked.

Then another cat appeared near his foot. Then another.

He looked around and finally noticed the little signs he missed at the entrance - paw prints painted near the bottom of the wall, a small basket of toys, a shelf with neatly stacked blankets.

This was a cat cafe.

Raizen stared, then exhaled a quiet laugh he didn't even mean to make.

The woman behind the counter glanced at him and smiled knowingly, as if she saw this exact reaction all the time.

"First time?" she asked.

Raizen nodded slowly. "Yeah."

She nodded toward the counter. "What can I help you with?"

Raizen's mind went completely blank. So he asked for what was at the sign outside… "Uhh… A cup of herbal tea."

"Any preference?" she asked.

Raizen thought for a second. "I honestly have no Idea… Do you have something specific to Ukai?"

The woman smiled wider. "I might have something for that."

Raizen paid, waited for a few minutes, then carried the cup carefully to a corner table near the glass wall. Outside, rain streaked down the window in long lines, distorting the streetlights into soft blurs. He sat down on a fluffy sofa-chair and wrapped both hands around the warm cup.

For the first time all day, his shoulders dropped fully.

Then the cats fully surrounded him.

One hopped into the chair beside him like it belonged there. Another pressed against his leg, purring loudly. A third stepped onto the table without shame, sniffed the steam rising from the tea, then decided it wasn't interesting and curled up anyway.

Raizen stared at them, stunned.

"You guys are bold" he muttered.

A cat blinked at him slowly, unimpressed.

Raizen reached out and scratched behind its ear.

The cat leaned into his hand immediately.

Something in Raizen's chest loosened.

He didn't know why this helped. It just did. The cats were warm, soft and relaxing in a simple way. At least this didn't involve death, secrets, or missions. The cats didn't care about his past or his future. They just cared about attention, warmth, and whether he kept petting them.

Raizen sipped his tea while a completely black cat with really long fur and ears climbed into his lap like it chose him.

He kept petting them, half-absent, half-amused.

The tea tasted minty and sweet, but it had an earthy aftertaste, like leaves that grew under heavy rain. It warmed his throat and chest without burning.

For a few minutes, Raizen almost felt normal.

Then the bell at the door chimed again.

A gust of wet air entered with whoever stepped inside.

Raizen didn't look right away. He assumed it was just another customer.

Then he heard the sound of an umbrella being closed. Too calm. Too controlled.

He glanced up.

A man stood near the entrance in a simple yet elegant coat, very long sleeves darkened by rain. His umbrella dripped onto the wooden floor, but he didn't seem bothered by it at all.

Professor Eiden.

Raizen's back straightened without him thinking.

The cats didn't care. One stayed in his lap. Another remained on the table.

Eiden's eyes swept the cafe, then landed on Raizen. He paused for a fraction of a second, and smiled kindly. Then, he turned towards the woman, ordered something and gestured towards the table where Raizen sat.

Then he walked over.

Eiden didn't ask permission to sit. He simply pulled out the chair opposite Raizen and sat down smoothly, like they planned to meet here.

Raizen blinked. "Professor…"

Eiden's gaze flicked briefly to the cats, then back to Raizen's face.

His voice stayed calm.

"You're doing a terrible job staying unnoticed" Eiden said.

Raizen's stomach tightened. "I wasn't trying to be unnoticed-"

Before he could fully answer, Eiden suddenly leaned forward slightly, voice dropping.

"Did a certain… Mina speak to you?"

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